Valiance
by RoadWild
Summary: alt!power Taylor Trapped in the locker wanting nothing else but to have control over the situation and escape, Taylor triggers with the power to control metal. -Complete-
1. Chapter 1

The streets were quiet, but Taylor Hebert knew better than to assume all was peaceful.

All around her she could feel the metal in everything calling out for her to control it, to shape it. Taylor drew her arms close around her and tried to block out the noise as she tried to focus on activity on the streets. Still nothing, but she couldn't expect to find anything on her first patrol.

She had triggered several weeks ago. A year and a half of bullying culminated in her being shoved into a locker filled with used tampons and pads, and all of her classmates ignoring her panicked screams. Taylor was barely conscious when her power sparked in her mind and was catatonic when the locker opened letting her fall out. The hallway was empty. Eventually she was found by a passing teacher, and an ambulance was called. She spent a week in the hospital, and when she returned the bullying had gotten worse. She grew sick of it and vowed to vent her anger on patrol during the weekend. Unfortunately, however, apparently Brockton Bay's crime underworld had apparently chosen to take a break. There was really nothing happening. Not even a mugging or even some shady characters in an alley.

Her armor was essentially just metal pulled from her surroundings covering her entire body. Aside for a small gap for her eyes, no part of her was visible. Even her hair was covered, and it was a mesmerizing sight when she shook it. She had considered making an emblem or a symbol, but she knew it would be immediately made fun of.

Taylor slowly took in the increased sensory input her power gave her. She could feel all the metal in a block around her but could control it farther if she had sight of it. Everything had a distinct shape in her mind, with cars being massive beasts of complexity with its engine being a hotbed of activity, or building foundations being roots groaning with stress. And then, something highly suspicious appeared on the edge of her range. A large group of guns and knives were loosely moving alongside the street, and she doubted it was any sort of police or military force.

She moved closer, jumping across rooftops using limbs from her armor to help her across. As she got within hearing range she heard an accented voice lecturing the group. "-the children, just shoot. Doesn't matter your aim, just shoot. You see one lying on the ground? Shoot the little bitch twice more to be sure. We're getting our fucking money back and teaching them a lesson, hear me?"

Taylor cursed when she realized what the man was saying. She had a general idea of where the men were going, and gasped when she felt a mask on the man leading the group. It was made of porcelain or some other material Taylor couldn't feel, but she could feel the metal highlighting the mask. _Lung_

This wasn't how she wanted her first patrol to go. Maybe beat up some Merchants, save someone's life. But this was something more now. The men were nearing the building now, and she could hear them casually readying their guns and slipping on masks. Steeling her will, Taylor leaped over the ledge and used her limbs to slow her fall. The men turned, and Taylor felt some regret when Lung moved towards her. His low growl was loud enough to be heard over his entire gang, and Taylor could see that he was beginning to grow taller. "You gonna fight me girl? Gonna try and save some thieves?" She said nothing, and simply raised her fists.

Lung roared and charged her. Behind him, his men took aim and fired, careful to not hit their leader. Taylor pulled metal from parked cars and trash bins and formed a thin wall that just barely caught the bullets and stopped Lung. Well, temporarily. There was another roar, and a large dent appeared in the wall. Taylor integrated the bullets into her shield and tried to think of a way out. She could simply run away now, and hope Lung's targets heard the commotion and got away. But that hinged on a lot of assumptions and she couldn't leave someone's life up to chance. She considered fighting him head-on but was discouraged when she remembered that the entire local Protectorate team had once tried to fight him but limped home after massive destruction to the Docks and the surrounding areas.

There was another roar, and slowly Taylor could feel her wall beginning to heat up. She made a quick decision. She pulled on the steel in her attacker's guns, in the street lights, in everything she could pull on, and pulled it all towards Lung. It formed a featureless thick cocoon and inside she could feel Lung thrashing around. _Not today_ She reformed it's shape again and again and smiled when Lung's trashing grew weaker. Unfortunately, she wasn't lucky. Lung's unpowered gang members wasn't sitting idle. In her focus on keeping Lung contained the group of men approached her and tried their best to attack. This broke her attention as she tried to fend off the men without killing them and was caught off guard when Lung burst from the cocoon easily several feet taller than before. The air around him was now noticeably hotter, and flames began to pool in his hands. His deep gravelly voice was now barely comprehensible, but Taylor made out "I'm going to make you die slow"

Taylor was now panicked. A raging fire dragon was not something she wanted to fight, and she doubted she could do anything to stop him. The unpowered gang members were now moving away from the dragon's path, and she could hear them escaping into the alley. Taylor reached out with her metal sense and pulled any metal leftover that she had missed in her frantic diversion. She turned back to run, and she could hear Lung's heavy footfalls as he followed her.

She sent waves of metal back toward him, all either trying to cut into him or even temporarily slow him. The alleyways became a maze of death: a single misstep would let Lung catch up. She cursed her luck as Lung bellowed behind her and hissed when she nearly slipped on a puddle. _Shit! I need to escape or find something to distract Lung with-what the hell was that?_

There was a massive roar, but it was interrupted by what sounded like a car crash. Taylor reached out with her senses, and gasped when she felt a large twisted hunk of very complicated metal in front of Lung, and what felt like a man in some sort of suit stepping off it. Then she recognized the mask and turned her head towards him. _Armsmaster._ She debated leaving. A professional hero was now on the scene and she could run away now. But then she felt a swipe slam Armsmaster into a wall, and she could practically hear his entire body groan under the pressure. She ironed her resolve and began to run back. She could hear grunting and massive destruction and winced when she felt Armsmaster's bike get crushed. She called any available metal and began to form a spear. She was fairly sure she could launch it, but she hadn't gotten much practice; and that practice was only launching small balls of metal. But now Armsmaster was slowly being overpowered by Lung. She rounded the corner and was unnoticed by both the fighters. Taylor took careful aim; if she hit Armsmaster then she could very likely take a limb off. This was her plan. Hopefully the loss of a limb could shock Lung long enough for Armsmaster to either escape or come up with some sort of solution.

She took aim and launched the metal with all the strength she could muster. It blurred, flitting through the air faster than she could see. She knew that Lung had no idea that catastrophic damage was heading his way. When it hit, there wasn't even a noise. One moment Lung was bearing down on Armsmaster, looking as if he was some sort of demonic frost giant, the next he was flat on the ground with a stump where his leg was. Taylor could see on the other side of the street Lung's leg was pinned to the opposite building, and it appeared Armsmaster was stunned by the quick turn of events. Taylor ran up to him, tugged on his arm, and said "C'mon, we need to get out before he regenerates his leg"

Armsmaster shrugged her off, before appraising her makeshift armor. His mouth set into a thin line, and Taylor could see gears turning in his head. She could tell he immediately connected her with Lung being temporarily decapitated, but he clutched his halberd closer and moved towards Lung. Taylor was helpless and tried her best to pull him back but resigned herself to simply watching as Armsmaster moved towards Lung. This gave Taylor an idea. If she wrapped metal around Lung's stump would it regenerate? She tried it and was pleased to see that the limb did not regenerate any further.

Armsmaster pressed something on his halberd, and then took a few swipes at Lung's prone form. Taylor could see that the blade was secreting something but couldn't guess as to what. When Lung's struggling slowly grew weaker, she guessed it was some sort of tranquilizer. Seeing that his work was almost done, Armsmaster turned to face Taylor. He appraised her stance, and Taylor could see he was deliberating. Finally, he questioned "So. You Empire 88?"

Taylor was floored but could see why he would ask. With Hookwolf and Kaiser making up the sole metal controllers in Brockton Bay it was easy to draw parallels with her and the Nazis. Combine that with some of her skin being visible from the visor in some areas it would immediately point to her being part of the gang. She quickly shook her head, and unsteadily replied "First night out, nothing to do with the Empire at all I swear"

Armsmaster moved over to Lung and motioned for her to help restrain him. He pulled out a string of handcuffs and was momentarily surprised when Taylor used her power to mold them into something large enough to completely restrain Lung. He looked up and asked "Are you going to join the Wards?"

Taylor had given this some thought and had ultimately decided that joining the Wards program would bog her down with too many procedures to operate efficiently. When she told Armsmaster this, he grimaced but said "I know what it feels like to lose efficiency because of some badly written rules, but with proper support and protocol we could help you grow into a better hero. That brings us to the other issue."

Taylor tensed slightly, but relaxed when she remembered that she couldn't really get in trouble for decapitating Lung. Worst comes to worst she would have to make a quick escape and try to steer clear of heroes for a little while. Armsmaster continued with "The capture of Lung is going to send waves all across Brockton Bay. While this isn't the first time that Lung has been captured, with the ABB starting to make aggressive expansions into the Docks the other gangs may try to strike while they're spread thin and without their trump. This will put an immediate target on whoever took him down. I won't lie. The credit for taking Lung down is really attractive to me but alienating a new parahuman flies in the face of various restrictions and my own morals. How do you want to play this?"

Taylor was floored. Popular opinion, (And PHO), called Armsmaster socially inept, often making direct statements and being utterly useless in emotional situations. But then something struck her odd on the way Armsmaster spoke. Thinking on it, Taylor recognized the slow pace he spoke with and called Armsmaster out. "Are you reading a teleprompter?"

A little chagrined, Armsmaster slowly replied "Well... I may have asked Dragon for help with interacting with other people"

Taylor was flabbergasted. She couldn't tell whether she should feel sorry for the man or be outraged. _He made a program specifically for interacting with other people? What the hell?_ Her thoughts must have showed on her face, for Armsmaster quickly followed up by saying "It's still in its preliminary stages, it's mostly just Dragon sending me cues."

Taylor had nothing to say to that and tried to remember what the question was before. She hesitantly said "I-I'm not really sure what to do. It was really a joint effort."

Armsmaster let some of the tension seep out of his shoulders and gave her a small smile that would have made headlines if people were around to see it. He assured her "I have to make sure somebody arrives for pickup for Lung and see what scraps of my motorcycle survived. You sure about not joining the Wards? We could give a tour first"

Taylor shook her head and began to move away. Armsmaster noticed and simply said "I've got this under control. You can go if you want"

Taylor was thankful and made her retreat. Her mind spun with possibilities, but when she was halfway home, she let out a loud curse. "Fuck! I didn't tell him my name!"


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Argh anxiety of messing this up I'm so sorry**

The next day Taylor was sleep deprived all to hell but was very attentive to the news. Every local channel was playing an interview with Armsmaster on Lung's capture, and Taylor let out a small squeal when Armsmaster referred to her as 'an unknown parahuman hero'. She knew it wasn't much; she was completely unknown as far as the news were concerned. But as long as people knew that a new hero was out in Brockton Bay then she was happy to remain unnamed. She had previously thought quite a bit on her name and was undecided between Alloy, Steelback, and Ferrule.

She toyed with the idea of going out on open patrol, but she was hesitant because that meant possibly running into other more experienced capes. Meeting New Wave would be awesome but running into Hookwolf? She'd like to keep her blood _inside_ her body please thank you.

Her home was at a no-man's land of sorts. With the Merchants to the west, the Empire to the South, and the ABB to the East, any further expansion into the Docks would immediately trigger a gang war of likes Brockton Bay hasn't seen since the Slaughterhouse Nine fought the Teeth.

She resigned herself to rest for the rest of the day and playing with her powers.

* * *

Monday. Taylor was hesitant to go to school. After fighting Lung Taylor wasn't sure if she could let herself be bullied so easily. As she walked towards her first class, she noticed that several passing Asians wearing ABB colours had something metallic inside their head. She grabbed hold of one piece with her powers and pulled it apart. The boy disintegrated.

The hallway erupted into screams and everybody dashed away from the dust. The other ABB members were panicking, frantically yelling something about punishment and being ahead of time.

Taylor for her part was frozen at the end of the hallway. She had felt the small metal ball detonate and was now terrified of setting off another one. Several teachers had run out of their classrooms now, fearing a stabbing or something else gang related, but froze when they saw nothing but a pile of ashes.

Her power was now in overdrive. She spread her senses across the school and was horrified when she felt several similar bombs in other people's heads. She ran to the bathroom and hid in a stall. _Shit shit shit I can't tell the PRT or else they'll know I'm the hero that helped take down Lung, but if I don't then whoever made these bombs get away._

Tentatively, Taylor reached out with her powers again, trying to get a good count of the number of bombs in the school. She doublechecked and made a note. _28 bombs. 28 people a moment away from death. Who did this?_

The news began to slowly sweep through the school, and general panic set in. Police were called, and the students were dismissed for the day. The administration knew that nobody would be paying attention that day.

Taylor went to the library, intent on doing research. She knew that the bombs were only in members of the ABB, and whoever made it was capable of mass producing or at least making the design with very little variation.

She clocked in time at the computer and checked out Parahumans Online. She normally never got on this, parts being not owning anything that could connect to the internet and also not seeing the value of joining a website that's famous for derailing and going off topic.

Her research was initially slow, due to her unfamiliarity with the website. Eventually however, Taylor managed to work out the basics and went on with her research. She eventually found out that Lung had attacked a convoy a few months prior and busted out the now infamous Cornell bomber. That explained where they got the bombs but didn't explain why she would implant them into her own gang members. Taylor made a note questioning motive and continued looking up the other villains in Brockton Bay. _May as well get the most from this I can. _Eventually her time ran out, and Taylor spent the rest of her time in the library reading.

Taylor was halfway home when she heard loud crashing and shredding. It came from her right, and when she turned the corner to see what it was, she was nearly crushed when a dumpster flew past her. It crashed into a wall, but then shakily rose and flew back to where it was thrown. Taylor peeked around the corner and saw most of the street ahead of destroyed. She recognized Rune from PHO and identified Hookwolf just from the sound of cutting and whirring. They were steadily destroying the street, trying to fight a ma-_Oni Lee_. The duplicating bomber was famed for running circles around the best heroes, and now Hookwolf and Rune were doing their best to rip him in two. Rune was high up in the air, controlling metal spikes to try and nail down Oni Lee, while Hookwolf was roaring and just carving up anything that moved near him. Already there were maimed and dead on the ground, and Taylor nearly wretched when she realized neither party was paying attention to those caught in the crossfire. In fact, Oni Lee was using bystanders as cover and distractions while he dodged around Hookwolf.

Taylor ran into an alley, giving no thought as to who may see her. She dumped her bag behind a dumpster and immediately pulled what available metal she could feel. She rushed her suit and ran back into the street, metal still flowing behind her trying to fully cover her hair. Oni Lee was now teleporting onto Rune's platform and she was having to fend him off with nothing more than a knife, while Hookwolf bellowed from below.

Taylor focused on Hookwolf first. She reached out with her senses and realized she could manipulate the many blades that came out of his body. _Well this got a lot easier_ Taylor simply grabbed at Hookwolf and rent the blades from his body. There was a brief moment where Hookwolf looked at the blades that previously made up most of his body floating in the air disbelievingly, before he saw Taylor behind it and roared. He jumped into the floating mass, and shocked Taylor when she saw that he had reabsorbed most of it. The hulking mass of blades leapt towards her, and Taylor barely got out of the way. _Fuck! Of course he knows how to deal with his blades being pulled off. He fights Lung on a regular basis! _Taylor grabbed metal from nearly streetlights and manholes and kept the metal fluid so she could readily adapt to whatever Hookwolf did.

The whirring mass of blades grew larger, and Taylor felt her gut sink. Hookwolf was now bigger than Lung was size-wise when she fought him, but now she didn't have Armsmaster to help her. Taylor was preparing for Hookwolf to maul her when surprisingly Hookwolf stopped and yelled "You stupid bitch don't use my blades! Get the chink with his own bombs!"

Taylor was shocked that Hookwolf tried to order her, but then groaned when she realized Hookwolf thought she was part of the Empire. _I seriously need to change my costume or something. Maybe add a robe? Agh wait if it's white then I'll definitely look like a Nazi. Why do they ruin everything_ "I'm not Empire goddamnit! I'm taking the three of you down!"

Hookwolf let out a bellow, and Taylor realized it was a laugh. "You think you can fight me, Rune, and the stupid chink by yourself? Your funeral"

Taylor raised her fists readied herself for the coming fight when somebody flew behind her. A loud confident voice spoke "She isn't alone. Hookwolf, I'm going to make you eat your own blades."

Taylor turned, and was surprised to see Glory Girl. She glanced down and whispered "Not sure when backup is coming. What's your name?"

Taylor fumbled and stuttered "I'm-I'm er-"when Hookwolf charged. Taylor immediately turned, trying to ignore her embarrassing response. She whipped out her arm and was satisfied when the liquid metal she kept floating slammed Hookwolf into the road. When he got back up, Taylor repeated the action, but this time Hookwolf dodged. Glory Girl flew past her and punted Hookwolf into the air but suffered a long cut across her clothes. Hookwolf crashed back down and was evidently shook by the way he walked into a car. Glory Girl didn't let up and flew towards him as fast as she could and crushed him against a wall. Her dress was being torn to shreds, and she let her anger be known as she screamed "You're fucking paying for this you bastard!"

Taylor once against attempted to 'disarm' Hookwolf so to speak. She grabbed all the metal she felt on Hookwolf, and wrenched hard. Hookwolf was still being battered by Glory Girl and thus was completely unprepared. He was left almost completely naked, with only a mask to hide his identity. Glory Girl reared back in disgust and knocked him out with a forceful slam into a car. As she looked Hookwolf over, she turned back and remarked to Taylor "You couldn't have warned me you were going to strip Hookwolf?"

Taylor faintly blushed and shrugged, and simply said "Wasn't sure if it would work again. Let's deal with Rune and Oni Lee 'kay?"

Glory Girl gaped and pointed to something behind Taylor. "Maybe a bit too late for that"

Taylor turned, and saw Rune dangling a limp body in the air. Upon closer examination she realized it was Oni Lee, and that Rune was actually levitating a ring of metal she warped around his ankle. Taylor was initially surprised that Rune had managed to capture the suicide bomber that had managed to fend off many experienced capes in the past, but remembered that although Oni Lee had ferocity, his attacks were always simplistic and was never more than just "Teleport around and suicide bomb them". The only reason why he wasn't in the Birdcage several times over is because Lung kept breaking him out before he could be incarcerated. Rune kept shaking Oni Lee up and down and Taylor was worried she was going to drop him. As Glory Girl flew towards Rune, Taylor heard someone stop behind her. _Son of a b-_ Taylor whipped around. Laserdream was awkwardly waving behind her while splitting her attention between Glory Girl fighting Rune and speaking to the new cape. "Hi! I'm assuming you're a hero since Vicky hasn't beaten you down or anything. I'm Laserdream-Crystal. You are?"

Taylor took a deep breath and said "I'm kind of undecided between Steelback and Alloy. The guy over there is Hookwolf, now if we get Rune then it'll be three for three"

Laserdream turned back to look at Hookwolf, before letting out a whistle. "I can count on one hand the number of times Hookwolf was caught and still have fingers left over. Nice catch. What's your plan for Rune?"

Behind Taylor, Glory Girl let out a cough. "Bit late for that. Steelback, can you make something to bind these two?" She held up Rune in one hand and Oni Lee in the other. Oni Lee was missing his bandolier and had a sizable dent in his devil mask while Rune looked like she had been run over by a bus.

Taylor manipulated the liquid metal she had on standby into forming cuffs around Rune's and Oni Lee's wrists and turned to face Glory Girl and Laserdream. They were chatting animatedly between themselves, gesturing towards Hookwolf and the other villains. When she walked over the two stopped and turned towards her. Glory Girl flew off to assist paramedics in moving the injured while Laserdream looked concerned and asked "Is this your first fight? It can be tough seeing all the... damage caused by Hookwolf" She looked a little sick as she surveyed the battlefield, specifically near the sidewalks.

Taylor tilted her head, before remembering that there was no description of her when she fought Lung. She simply said "Second time out. Hookwolf is no Lung but I'd say this time was a little harder."

Taylor immediately held Laserdream's full attention. She could see the gears turning in Laserdream's head. She tentatively asked "Wait, so two nights ago you fought Lung? You're the one that cut his leg off?"

Taylor was dismayed that that was the first thing that was associated with her fight with Lung. "I mean, he was already ramped up quite a bit and it's not like I could just beat him down. Only thing I could do is try and keep him down."

Laserdream back-pedalled, and quickly reassured Taylor "Nobody's blaming you, honest. Lung's stuck in a wheelchair for a month now while he regenerates, and by then he'll be deep in the Birdcage. It's just that nobody's really hurt Lung that much before, you know? A picture of Lung's leg pinned to the wall is just blowing up on PHO right now."

Taylor wondered how she missed that while looking up Brockton Bay's villains, especially since she looked up general info on Lung. She looked to the alley where she left her bag. She said "It was really nothing. I formed a spike and launched it at his leg as hard as I could. Armsmaster was the one that actually fought him."

Laserdream considered this and replied "Still, there's a lot of speculation on forums on who you are. You have a verified account yet?"

Taylor was a little embarrassed and said "Er-no. I'm not on the internet all that often, especially not enough to have a PHO account."

Laserdream perked up and said "Oh! It's really simple, all you have to do is message a mod and send a picture of you using your powers. It's really simple, what's your number? I'll text it to you"

"Sorry-I don't have a phone. I'll just look it up online, okay?" Taylor looked away at that, and awkwardly twisted some metal in her suit.

Laserdream noticed her demeanour and her gaze softened "If you want to go then I won't stop you. Vicky and I are just waiting for PRT to get here."

Before Taylor left she turned to Laserdream and said "Could you tell Glory Girl I said thanks? Not sure if I could've taken the three."

Laserdream waved goodbye and Taylor ducked back into the alley. She let the metal flow off of her, and after some consideration kept a little in her bag. _Can't really take any from my house for practice_

She picked up her bag and made her way back home. When she returned her dad wasn't home yet. The rest of her day was finishing homework, and occasionally checking the news. Finally, there was a segment on cape battles today. There, a reporter for the BBN stood nervously next to Glory Girl. Behind her were three foamed up bodies, and Taylor could see it was the three she fought earlier. The reporter thrust a microphone into Glory Girl's face and asked "So Glory Girl! Behind us is the infamous Hookwolf, Oni Lee and Rune, could you tell us what it was like fighting them?"

Glory Girl looked very bored and flipped her hair off to the side. She took a moment before answering, during which the reporter fidgeted nervously. "Honestly the only one I can take credit for is fighting Rune. She actually took Oni Lee out for me and she can't really hurt me with a few rocks. I teamed up with a new cape called Steelback who basically neutered Hookwolf."

The reporter blanched, before asking "Could you tell us what you mean by neutered? Because I'm not sure that's.."

Glory Girl let out a soft giggle and said "Turns out she could control the metal that Hookwolf used, so she just stripped him and I whacked him around a little bit. Might have to bring Amy over just in case I broke something."

"Well that's it folks all the time we have here today, Carl back to you!" The reporter finished quickly before rushing away from the bound villains.

Taylor was a little surprised at how the reporter was acting and her respect for the news fell a little. _It's only two psychopathic murderers, not like it's an Endbringer_. Taylor smiled when her name came out and was glad that she could help out. Of course this meant that she was now on both the ABB's and the Empire's hitlist, but putting away the three villains was more than worth the unwanted attention.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Okie this became insanely large but I just didn't know when to finish it. Whoops.

That night Taylor lay on her bed, thinking about school. _I killed that guy. He was only walking with his friends, and I blew his head off_

In order to distract herself Taylor felt around her house, trying to identify everything she could in order to distract herself. _There's the fridge. Microwave. That must be the toaster. Christ I can't do this._

Taylor got up and changed into something thin. She knew that if she stayed in bed she wouldn't sleep until far later in the night. Maybe a patrol would take her mind off things.

That night all was quiet, and aside from a few muggings there was nothing really happening. When Taylor climbed back in her room she collapsed onto her bed without another thought.

Morning. _Shit. School. _Taylor got up early and went for her run, then made breakfast as her dad woke up. He blearily reached out and Taylor acquiesced by handing him a cup of coffee. "Busy day today dad?"

Daniel Hebert had a constipated look on his face as he tried to process what Taylor just said. "Uhhh-oh yea. Just some negotiation. I'm really just sitting around all day. How about you kiddo?" He punctuated this with a short sip of coffee in the middle.

Taylor gave him a look at the nickname she detested all too much and when he gave her a lazy smile Taylor felt hope blossom in her chest. _Maybe.. maybe things can get better. _"Just school. I think we're going to have an assembly today. "

Daniel woke up a little from his sleep-deprived stupor and asked "Hm? What for?"

Taylor shrugged and said "Yesterday some.. bad things happened so I think it'll be about gang violence or something. Last time it was because somebody kicked in all the bathroom stall doors. Maybe they'll bring in a PRT officer or something."

Daniel lazily swung his cup around, gesturing around the kitchen. "Just Brockton Bay things then. Heard some rumours from some of my boys. Somebody died or something? Or lose a limb?"

Taylor grimaced and said "A ABB kid died; he just kind of disintegrated in the hallway. " she quickly added "I didn't see it, I was somewhere else" when Danny shot her a concerned look.

Danny paused for a little while, and then said "Everything else alright?"

Taylor simply answered with a nod.

When Taylor got to Winslow there was a palpable tension in the air. All the Empire 88 members were crowing about the death, while any member of the ABB gave nervous looks to each other. When Taylor reached her locker she sighed when she saw the lock was broken. Again. _I don't even remember how many times I've had to replace my lock. God damnit. _Taylor clenched her jaw and steeled her resolve, and then flung open her locker. She faltered, then nearly fell to her knees. The inside of the locker was decorated with pictures of her mother, all of them either clipped from academic presentations or from pictures during lectures. All of them had their eyes punched through and were otherwise defaced with various insults. There were easily 50 pictures plastered all over her locker. From her right three familiar footsteps approached. A high-pitched voice cackled "Aw Taylor! We knew you missed your mom so we found pictures of her to remind you! I hope you enjoy our little additions, it's to help remind you of yourself!"

Taylor swallowed the lump in her throat and turned to face the voice. There, Emma Barnes, Sophia Hess, and Madison Clements wore vicious smiles. Sophia had a hard glint her eyes as she called "Aw what's wrong, Hebert? Can't deals with the memories of your mom? We're so sorry, we thought it would make you happy!"

Taylor stood mute and looked away from them. Sophia darted forward and slammed Taylor into the lockers, and hissed in her face "Well, do you like it Hebert? What do you say when somebody does something nice for you?"

Taylor could feel the insides of the locker swirling and just begging to rip through and make Sophia regret her decision. She clamped down on her power, and just barely whispered "Th-thank you..."

A blood thirsty smile blossomed on Sophia's face, and she slammed Taylor back into the lockers. She turned back to Emma and Madison and said "Aww! Little weakling loves our little gift! It's okay, we'll make sure that you can see your dead mom more Hebert!"

Madison edged her posse on while Emma crowed. Taylor shut her eyes and tried to block out the jeers and laughter. Eventually Emma got bored and said "Come on, girls. Let's leave this _thing_ to cry itself to sleep for a week again!"

Tears gathered in the corners of Taylor's eyes as Emma and her friends moved away. She reached back to her head, and felt the bruise already forming. She crouched down and gathered up all the photos. She stashed them all in her bag. She went to the bathroom and began to cry. Around the school metal began to ripple and warp under her stress.

When Taylor went out first period was already over. She gathered herself and went to her next class. The rest of her day was dodging the steadily more aggressive attempts by the Trio to find and bully her more. This persisted up until the end of school. Taylor was walking home when she was grabbed and pulled into an alley. There, Sophia Hess slammed her into a dumpster and hissed in her ear "You think you're a smart little bitch, don't you? I'll show you how much of a weakling you really are."

Sophia kept slamming her into the dumpster, but Taylor softened the metal every time. By the time Sophia was done Taylor was dazed from the constant shaking. She was released and fell to the dirty floor and was kicked several times in the stomach. As Taylor groaned, she felt fury coil in her stomach, and she wanted nothing else than to punish Sophia. She reached out for metal, and felt something... strange in Sophia's bag. It looked like several canisters, yet they were too small to contain paint or anything else to deface her stuff. Then, beside it, was something that felt like-_a crossbow_.

_But.. why would Sophia have a crossbow? Unless she was going to kill me or something.. something like a goddamn cape! Who uses a goddamn crossbow, Leet-no that exploded, that New York Ward that has a shit ton of fanfics, Sh-Shadow Stalker?_

Taylor grasped deeper and felt the outlines of a mask of some sort. She wasn't as intimately familiar with the Wards as she was with the rest of the Protectorate, but she could mostly recognize masks. _The outline... the general shape... add the crossbow and bolts... fuck Shadow Stalker is my bully. _

The realization made Taylor feel numb, and she didn't hear whatever Sophia said. She lay still, and when hard hands grasped at her throat she thrashed. Finally she could hear what Sophia was saying. "Dammit you didn't have a heart attack or anything? Hebert you can't even do one thing right can you? Don't worry, there's always tomorrow!"

Taylor lay on the ground long after Sophia left. She finally got up when drops of rain began to fall. She slowly walked home, climbed into her bed, and screamed into her pillow. Her neighborhood felt the distress as foundations groaned and cars began to shake. Taylor ran out of air to scream, but she buried her head into her pillow, still distressed. She could feel her power stirring, begging to pull and stir and change the foundations of the world.

Taylor walked down to the living room. Very little escaped her focus. Her sense now went out a little past her neighborhood, and she could feel the deterioration of Brockton Bay with all too painful clarity. Abandoned cars, bullets embedded in walls, power lines cut, and sewage pipes rusted over. Her power let her change the modern world as she felt fit, and she was unhappy. She reached out and felt metal sing as it flowed towards her. She leapt out of a window, well out of sight of her neighbors and passersby. She began a slow walk towards the city and was surprised when she felt a familiar motorcycle ride into her range. She walked closer and could hear Armsmaster talking into his radio. "Armsmaster here. Arrived at the area reporting parahuman disturbance. Beginning recon and surveillance."

Taylor blushes as she realized she was the reason for the calls_. Whoops_

She walked out into Armsmaster's field of view, and she felt him turn towards her. "Parahuman hero with designation 'Steelback' sighted, will attempt to interview for information. Armsmaster out"

Taylor suppressed a sigh when Armsmaster rode over and steeled her will. She looked up and pre-empted "Sorry. I was feeling.. bad and guess I didn't control my power enough."

Armsmaster blinked at the casual admittance and spoke into his radio again. "Armsmaster again. Parahuman 'Steelback' has admitted to being the cause of the disturbance. Will question "

Taylor shifted awkwardly as she bore the brunt of the hero's attention and said "Um, I found out something disturbing and I couldn't deal with it there. Sorry if I scared some people. "

Armsmaster's mouth settled into a line, and she could tell he wasn't impressed. "I'm glad you didn't take it out there, but could you tell me why me you felt so distressed?"

Taylor looked away and whispered "it's nothing. "

Apparently Armsmaster built audio sensors into his helmet as he heard it all too clear. "I'm not sure it's nothing if it's able to rattle someone like you. "

Taylor blushes and said "Li-like me?"

Armsmaster shook his head and said "You fought and crippled Lung on your first day out. After that you were instrumental in capturing Hookwolf. You've made waves Steelback, for the better or the worse. "

Taylor looked up and asked, "Better or the worse?"

Armsmaster quickly corrected himself. "You've definitely made this city safer. With Lung and Hookwolf off the streets you've made the Protectorate's job infinitely easier. It's just that with these changes the balance of power is changing. The gangs are moving in on ABB territory and the Empire is out for blood. If it wasn't for the bomb tinker the ABB would've collapsed already.

Taylor asked "Isn't it better that the ABB is so weak? I can't remember how many times Lung has rampaged.

Armsmaster grimaced and said "Well that means giving the Empire and Merchants more power than they have already. We're all glad Lung is gone. But that means empowering racists and drug addicts. "

Taylor looked away and said "Okay.. sorry. "

Armsmaster internally groaned and said "I've said this before, you did good work. It's just that there's consequences far beyond just putting a dangerous criminal away. Here, do you want to meet the Wards? This was at the tail-end of my patrol. "

Taylor perked up and said "Really? It's still open? After... what just happened?"

Armsmaster rolled his eyes, but this was hidden from Taylor. He said "Steelback, if we started branding Parahumans villains the moment they use their power on accident then there'd be no heroes at all. If you want to then let's go"

Taylor stared at the Rig. It was a confusing mass of metal with increasing complexity the deeper she looked. At the front it looked like a very simple floating bunker. But the deeper she looked she saw machines littering the walls with no rhyme or reason. She looked at Armsmaster expectantly, and he said "Base, this is Armsmaster with Parahuman hero 'Steelback'. Giving the Wards tour. "

Around the rig automated defenses turned away from her, and Taylor realized with a start that her power bounced straight off the defenses.

Armsmaster took her down a winding hallway, and Taylor reached out with her power. They were heading towards a massive metal bulkhead. Armsmaster stepped up towards a computer terminal and put in rapid inputs. After what felt like a solid minute the bulkhead opened. Taylor stepped in and was surprised when the floor began to fall. Armsmaster noticed her surprise and simply said "Elevator was designed to be as efficient as possible. "

About halfway down a loud buzzer sounded, and Taylor looked questioningly at Armsmaster. "Buzzer to let the Wards know to mask up. For visitors only"

When the wall opened up revealing a large room, Taylor gave up any pretense of knowing where she was going. Armsmaster stepped forward and called out "Wards, meet independent hero Steelback."

Immediately space squeezed and Taylor felt queasy as she felt the metal stretch to impossible lengths. Then a small blonde girl appeared in front of her and Taylor realized with a startle that it was Vista. The youngest Ward on the team was also Taylor's favourite, and she couldn't help but smile. Vista thrusted a hand towards Taylor and said "It's a pleasure to meet you Steelback! I'm Vista"

Taylor accepted the hand and said "Vista! It's so great to meet you- you're my favourite Ward!"

Vista shifted, obviously embarrassed. She looked away and said "Th-thank you! But you're my favourite new hero! You took out Lung and Hookwolf!"

Taylor felt a suit of metal coming up, and heard a modulated voice say "So you're the girl who neutered Hookwolf? That's amazing. I'm Gallant"

Taylor suppresses a groan and said "Seriously? I know I left him almost naked but is that what everyone thinks of first? Thank you Gallant"

An all-white blue ran towards her and cheered "All hail the Great Emasculator! Males kneel before your goddess!" The blur threw itself at Taylor's feet and groveled. Taylor heard Vista and Armsmaster both mutter "Damnit Clockblocker.."

Taylor giggled and said "So, you must be Clockblocker? Pleasure, but please don't call me that. I didn't touch him inappropriately at all!"

Clockblocker got up laughing and held his hand out for a shake. Taylor smiled as she reached out. By her sides Vista, Gallant, and Armsmaster all half shouted "No-!"

Taylor turned to look at them but was surprised when they all disappeared. A short cough drew her attention forward and she saw Armsmaster with his head in his heads. He quickly apologized, "Steelback, we're all so sorry about Clockblocker. He's our problem child. "

Taylor reflexively touched herself for any injuries but remembered what his power was. She was a little annoyed and asked, "How Long as I frozen?"

A new voice piped up behind her. "Long enough for the patrol to get back. "Taylor whipped around and saw a duo both wearing red and gold. The taller of the two offered his hand and Taylor without thinking accepted. "I'm Aegis. Leader of the Wards. Sorry about Clockblocker. He does that to everyone he meets. This is Kid Win. Not too sure where Shadow Stalker is." Taylor found it hard to swallow. The other red clad teen waved and simply said "Hi."

Taylor turned back to Armsmaster and forced out "So! Um, thank you for the introduction but... there's something important for you to know. "

Armsmaster looked up and asked, "Hm?"

Taylor looked a little nervously at the two Wards behind her, and Aegis said "We'll give you your privacy. C'mon Kid! Let's go play some video games. "

Armsmaster gestured to a door, and when Taylor opened it, she saw it was a meeting room. Armsmaster behind her said "It's a dead room. No transmitting in or out. Not even Dragon can get in. What was it? If you wanted to join the Wards you just have to ask."

Taylor sat and fidgeted. Slowly, she began. "It's about one of your Wards. The only one that wasn't here. Shadow Stalker. "

Armsmaster nodded and asked "Let me guess, she attacked you thinking you were a villain? I apologize, I'll make sure she's punished alongside Clockblocker. "

Taylor shook her head and said "No! No that! I know she also attends Winslow! I know who she is!"

Armsmaster sat rapt at attention and said "Steelback, you know that sharing the identity of a Ward is a felony, right?"

Taylor leaped up and said, "Yes I know that, but I also know that Shadow Stalker caused my trigger!"

Armsmaster was gobsmacked. She could see the gears whirring in his head. Finally, he asked "Steelback, are you absolutely sure it was Shadow Stalker? What proof do you have?"

Taylor stalked the room and spat out "I felt the crossbow and bolts in her bag when she beat me up after school. I also felt her mask. "

Armsmaster placed one hand on top of the other and asked "Are you absolutely certain. Because if you are then Shadow Stalker has violated her parole. But-that couldn't be your trigger. What caused it?"

Taylor winced as she remembered the traumatic time. Armsmaster realized his mistake and tried to take it back, but Taylor silenced him with a hand. Taylor slowly choked out "She..she shoved me into my locker.. filled with used tampons and pads. It was all.. so disgusting. I think it was left to fester over the Winter Break. "

Armsmaster got up and opened the door. He began searching and asked "Admitted to Brockton General Hospital-this was the first day of school after Winter Break?"

Taylor hissed "Yes! And it's been like this for the past two years! It's always her and fucking Emma Barnes and Madison Clements!"

Armsmaster paused, before walking over to Taylor. "Steelback. I need you to come with me. Your accusations are serious, and the Director needs to hear them. Now. I'll admit I don't know too much about the precedent here, but I'm sure there's something. "

Director Piggot had an imposing figure across the desk, and Taylor was intimidated by the stern look in her eyes. She distracted herself by focusing on the strange machine next to her. Director Piggot ignored this and asked "I've heard you have claims of extreme abuse by the Ward Shadow Stalker? Since you're here I'm sure Armsmaster has at least verified your story. "

Armsmaster behind her said "Director, ma'am, the reported events seem believable and is somewhat backed up by news sources. "

Director Piggot looked even more grave than she did before and asked Taylor "Steelback. So. You say that Shadow Stalker shoved you into "her nose crinkled "a locker full of biological contaminants and locked you there"

Taylor gulped and said "Yes-er filled with used tampons and lads and stuff. She's also been bullying me for the past two years. "

Director Piggot sighed and flipped through a few files. She stopped on a file and Taylor blanched when she realized it read Hatchetface. "Steelback. I've got to say that although parahumans being triggered by another Parahuman abusing or even just using their powers isn't new, but this is the first time a Ward has been implicated as the abuser. Shadow Stalker was already on probation for extreme activities which was decided when she joined the Wards. This violates so many rules that she may never patrol until she's 40. So, you know Shadow Stalker's civilian identity?"

Taylor curtly responded "Yes. I know."

Director Piggot pointed to the file and said "I'm going to say that in almost every case where someone was triggered by another Parahuman there is immediate bloodshed and the abuser usually is killed. Thank you for not attacking my Ward. This brings us to completely new territory however. There may be a precedent for parahumans triggering new parahumans, but rarely do they live long enough to be punished. What do you want to do? I could bring this to my higher ups and see what they decide on, or I can punish Shadow Stalker and risk being overruled."

Taylor was outraged. This must've shown in her eyes as Director Piggot added "We don't want to damage our relations Steelback. But every punishment I dish out is reviewed and judged if it's fair and in line with PRT policies. Punishing Shadow Stalker with something that matches the severity of what she did will definitely get reviewed. It may even go to the Chief Director."

Taylor was a complete stranger to PRT regulations and was rather lost. Armsmaster explained "After a Director let the power go to their head the entire branch suffered. An oversight council was made to make sure all punishments were fair and just. "

Director Piggot nodded and said "Thank you Armsmaster. Sending this up to my superiors will take some time, whereas taking action now may be reviewed and annulled without supporting evidence."

Taylor almost melted in her chair, and the metal around her face loosened enough to see more of her face. She let her metal ripple and sat straight. "I can live with Sophia for a few more days. I want her punished fully. "

Director Piggot had a pleased look as she began to type on her desktop. She looked up from typing and asked, "If Shadow Stalker is removed from the Wards will you join?"

Taylor froze. Director Piggot gave her an expecting look and Taylor had no idea what to do. On one hand she was grateful for what Director Piggot was doing. But then she wasn't sure if she wanted to join an organization that let someone like Sophia slip through. She was also concerned that they would hamstring her, making her contribution to the Bay non-existent.

Director Piggot noticed her hesitation and said "Steelback this punishment does not hinge on you joining the Protectorate or not. Shadow Stalker is getting punished regardless of your decision. All I'm offering is some way to right the wrong _I_ let pass in my department. "

Taylor looked to the side and asked "Do..do I need to let my dad know?"

Director Piggot nodded and said "To join the Wards you need explicit parental permission. You're telling me your parents don't know?"

Taylor nodded mutely.

Armsmaster spoke up "Steelback there's no denial that you've been a positive factor in Brockton Bay. You've put away several dangerous criminals and I'm sure your parents would be proud. "

Taylor shakily asked "Can I have some time on this? I want to tell my dad on my own terms. "

Director Piggot hit enter and said "I trust you know the PRT Hotline's number? Call it when you want to join"

Taylor nodded thankfully and let Armsmaster guide her out of the PRT base. She was conscious of several people taking photos of her and Armsmaster. She looked up into where Armsmaster's eyes would be and asked "About Winslow…"

Armsmaster nodded and said "I'll make sure they face appropriate punishment. "

Taylor nodded and said "Thank you. Thank you so much. "

Armsmaster shook his head and said "No, I'm sorry that we didn't catch this behavior sooner. Good luck telling your parents"

Taylor walked away and pulled herself onto a rooftop. She then collapsed and lay on her back. _Oh my god Sophia is finally being punished. _

When Taylor got home her dad was waiting for her. He sat at the kitchen table looking cross. Taylor knocked on the wall and asked "Er, hi dad?"

Danny immediately stood up and questioned "Taylor where have you been? You've been gone all day. Have you joined a gang?"

Taylor immediately got defensive and said "No! You've given me so many talks when I was younger about not joining them. I was.. out "

Danny immediately relaxed, and he leaned against the chair. He asked "Do you know how late it is? I thought you were kidnaped!"

Taylor shrugged and said, "I'm not Jewish enough for the Empire, the ABB is falling apart and the Merchants are a mess."

Danny made aggravated air gestures and said "None of that matters! I thought you were gone and I was all alone and you're my last memory of-... of Anne!"

Taylor looked down and thought back to the many times she's found her Father crying during the months after the car crash. She hesitantly said "Dad.. there's something I need to tell you. "

Danny swung his head towards her and sarcastically said "What now you're a Parahuman too?"

Taylor was silent, instead swinging her hand up and pulling the metal she kept in her bag to form a ball around her hand.

Danny froze, and almost fell. He staggered towards her and touched the ball of metal. He confirmed he wasn't dreaming and said "T-t-t-Taylor, you-you triggered? You're a hero?"

Taylor nodded sadly, and said "I met with Armsmaster today. It turns out.. one of my bullies was a Ward. They said they would punish her. "

Danny clutched her and hissed "And you think they would keep their promise?"

Taylor nodded and said "I met Director Piggot. She started doing the paperwork in front of me. Dad. I trust her. "

Danny pulled her close and whispered "Are you sure it's the best? They-they let the bully through. God knows who else there is"

Taylor hugged him and said "I met the other Wards. They're all nice dad. I'll be safe with them. If I'm lucky I can also get transferred to Arcadia. Winslow can go rot"

Danny abruptly stood up and said "I'm too sober for this. Taylor I fully support you, but this is currently a bit much. I'm going to the store. Have a good night. I think there's some food left in the fridge. "

Danny grabbed his keys and wallet and left the house. Taylor fell against the wall, disbelieving how that conversation went. _Oh my god I told him I told him I can't believe it_

The next day Taylor didn't go to school. She looked at her dad and simply nodded. The message was clear. She went to the house's landline and dialled the PRT's number. She toyed with the line as she waited.

Finally somebody answered. A automated voice intoned "Welcome to the PRT Hotline. Please note that prank calling this number is a crime and will start a trace on your phone. If you wish to report a Parahuman disturbance press one. If you wish to give an anonymous tip press two. If you wish to join the PRT press four. If you wi-" Taylor pressed four.

The same voice said "Thank you for your interest in joining the PRT. Official applications can be sent in to your local PRT office. If you wish to make an inquiry press one. If you wish to join the Protectorate press two." Taylor pressed two.

A younger, female voice now said "Thank you for expressing your interest in joining the Protectorate. If you are a parahuman please press one." Taylor jabbed at one, annoyed at how long this was taking.

A gruff voice said "Thank you for attempting to join the Protectorate. Please note that your address has been noted and if this is a prank call a police car will be immediately dispatched to your location." Taylor gulped and looked nervously at the door.

Finally, a fresh woman's voice said "Hi! So you wish to join the Protectorate? Are you a known cape or a new trigger?"  
Taylor stumbled over her words, before restarting and saying "I'm Steelback. The hero who helped with Hookwolf and Lung. I met with the Director yesterday?"

The woman read something under her breath, before saying "Okay, I've got a memo here from the Director about watching out for a new hero in the next few days. Steelback, right? Says here I've got to route you directly to the Director after confirming you're her. Could you tell me how you reached the Wards room on the Rig?"

Taylor cracked her neck and said "I got on the elevator with Armsmaster and it went down. About halfway down a loud buzzer sounded to let the Wards know to put on a mask. Then a wall opened up and-"

Taylor was cut off by the voice cheerily saying "Okay!" and Director Piggot's voice saying "Steelback, nice to hear back from you. How did the talk go?"

Taylor shook her hand and said "Well my dad has a hangover now but he knows. So how do I join?"

Director Piggot shuffled some papers and said "You know where the PRT's office is right? You and your parents should come separately. You dressed up and your parents with the intention to report a crime which is… their car got spray-painted in gang colours and their house was set on fire."

Taylor looked at her dad and repeated what Director Piggot said. She turned back to the receiver and said "Sure, we'll be there in about 10 minutes. Thank you."

Director Piggot quickly added in "By 'in costume' you know what I mean right? Gallant came in in an actual suit"

Taylor let out a small laugh and said "Yes, with my 'work' suit on. Thank you"

She turned to Danny and said "Let's go"

Taylor walked up to the PRT building with her suit on. She made awkward circles in her suit as people whispered and pointed at her. Her dad had gone in previously and was now waiting for her. She stepped in the lobby and was greeted by Aegis. "Hi there Steelback. Sorry about Clockblocker. The Director gave him console duty for a week. He seriously needs to learn to stop doing that"

Taylor shook his hand and said "It's okay, really. Just a little annoyed it lost me some time. Let's go meet the Director?"

The elevator ride was a short and Taylor was relieved when Aegis said bye and went back down. She walked down the hallway. The secretary outside the Director's door motioned her in and Taylor pushed open the door. There, her dad, Director Piggot, and Armsmaster waited for her. Taylor smoothed her hair out and walked in.

Her dad was already filling out paperwork, and Taylor saw that Armsmaster was also stuck to the same task. Director Piggot looked at her and asked "Steelback, nice to see you join us. Your father is almost finished with the paperwork and we need your signature on a few things. The others are already being processed."

Taylor took a pen and signed where Director Piggot pointed out for her. Her father was already grouching about his aching hand and Taylor rolled her eyes when he spoke about how he signed less papers at the Dockworker's Association in a year than he just did. She finished signing and rolled her metal around. Director Piggot gave her a small smile and said "Steelback, Taylor. Welcome to the Wards."

Taylor preened under the attention, while Danny said "About her bullies. I want her out of Winslow."

Director Piggot shook her head and said "Already done. The only issue is finding people who look like Taylor to join Arcadia as well, and that only takes time. Intern stuff"

Taylor looked at her surprised, and Armsmaster told her "Every time we have a Ward transfer to Arcadia we let in a few other people who physically look like the Ward. It's just a basic smokescreen-nothing really hard to do."

Taylor was quiet, as the gravity of what she did finally settled. For the better or the worse, she was now part of something greater than herself.


	4. Chapter 4

Valiance C4-Interludes

AN: Got bored while writing chapter three. Here you go

He was a killer. He was a strategist. He was a leader who buried everyone under his feet. And when he Triggered, Brockton Bay _thundered_.

They called him Oni Lee, for he was a demon.

There were more, before the sundering. Multiple Asian gangs that would band together against the Empire. And then Lung came to Brockton Bay.

Oni Lee originally schemed to kill Lung. Now he schemes no more.

Only the Dragon remains.

* * *

Ethan grinned as the assembled PRT troops laughed at his joke. Then winced when his beautiful wife punched him. But then he instantly forgave her because what else could he do when he was married to the most beautiful woman he's met?

Madcap was grown out of rage against unjust Birdcaging and corruption. Assault was born from love and a mostly innocent sense of humour. After all, if anyone could convince his Wife to go villain it would be him!

He was Glad to be part of the Protectorate now. He's with his amazing wife, he can help the Wards with growing up (and groom his protegé Clockblocker). And every now and then he gets called in to fight someone he recognizes from his days as Madcap! What more could he want?

Yet- lately Ethan has been staying up late reading the PRT handbooks. When his wife saw him reading them, she screamed and got him stuck in Master/Stranger screening for the rest of the week.

He felt a little guilty for reading up on the rules and regulations. Maybe it was wrong thinking about replacing his commander, the all amazing Halbeard. Maybe it was wrong thinking about snatching the spot from Miss Militia, who's been a hero for the longest on the team. But when he saw Velocity get his legs blown off by something Squealer made, when he saw Triumph crying after he saw what Hookwolf did to some helpless bystanders, his heart froze over, and he wanted nothing else but to personally destroy every gang in the city.

He knew the odds were stacked against him. He was a former villain, a well-known joker, and had definitely ruffled a few feathers. But when he voiced these concerns to Director Piggot she had simply shook her head and told him that "Leadership is decided on how you lead; not what higherups feel or your past"

So now he checked up on field regulations every time there was an update. He brushed up on department policies he never paid attention to. And he definitely didn't pay attention to how his wife's ass swayed while walking to the cafeteria.

* * *

Alabaster was once a scared boy. Otto was afraid when the scary men took him away from his Mother. He was afraid when he saw swastikas on their sleeves. Gesellschafts in West Germany was always more cruel than East Germany.

When they took him towards a landfill Otto realized what was going to happen and he tried to run away. They caught him and gave him a beating.

Bruised and battered Otto let his captors lead him into the dump. He closed his eyes when he heard a hammer cock. The bang was drowned out by the searing pain in his stomach as he fell back and writhed. The Gesellschafts members laughed and kicked him again. Then they got bored and left him.

Otto thought he was dying. Then-he wasn't. When he looked at his hands, they didn't have the many scars he had picked up while cooking. His stomach no longer hurt. When he got up to go home, he was met by a Gesellschafts cape. He became their star soldier.

Now, Alabaster isn't the scared little boy that triggered many years ago. He was in America, the dirty dump that destroyed the Second Reich 70 years ago.

He was part of the Empire 88, a group of proud Aryans who would teach the dirty races their place. Yet when he's off alone from his gang, when they're all looting and killing while he cleans up the dirty races, he sees himself. A shaking, teary-eyed Indian boy was on his knees, staring down the barrel of Alabaster's gun. He blinked in surprise when Alabaster gestured him to run with his gun and then holstered it.

Alabaster hated the Nazis. He wanted to kill all of them and burn every copy of Mein Kampf. But he couldn't do anything while Gesellschafts held his mother hostage. So, Otto plays the perfect Aryan soldier. Waiting to destroy an Empire.

* * *

There was a beautiful haze near the low ceiling that anyone could take a whiff from and get a little high. Skidmark had a manic grin on his face as the cocktail of drugs kicked in. He jumped to his feet, found Squealer, and began to shake her violently. "C'mon bitch trick out a fucking ride so we can loot some cock-guzzling blood-sucking shitstains!"

Squealer was a little dazed from the drugs, but the message got through. A light entered her eyes and she stomped towards the garage. Skidmark eyed her ass as she walked away. God was recruiting her the smartest decision he's ever made.

His drug addled mind began to pull together an incredible scheme to rob Brockton Bay's central bank-casually forgetting how he would escape the stupid fucking heroes.

After all what's the point of a high if he couldn't enjoy it?

* * *

Leet grabbed a pair of pliers as he tried to-

_Blueprints of various different machines filled his mind, from cryo-preservation to power suits_

He dropped it and hit himself on the head a few times. He needed to focus on his current project, the one that if it worked would propel Uber and Leet to a whole new level of fame.

Leet could build anything. But if he tried to build something again or something that could replicate his designs then it would always blow up. Without Uber's medical skills he would've lost multiple fingers by now.

He picked up the pliers again and got back to work. Making a quantum computer was already uncomfortably close to several ideas he's done before.

But that was only phase one. Phase two would be the moneymaker.

He was almost sure that phase two wouldn't fail. Couldn't fail too. He was going to try something he hasn't tried before-only something he's hinted at in the past.

He was going to make an AI, but not just any AI. He was going to scan his brain and upload it to the internet!

The quantum computer was specially made to house his mind, and he had already secured a deal with Cranial from Toybox so he could scan his brain.

Leet giggled as he thought about how many views he was going to get. Hopefully with a little playing around with chrono-drives he could reverse his mind and maybe even get back some technology to build!

* * *

Dragon murmured as she looked over the latest batch of 'Leet trash' as others called it. Her specialty was practically tailor-made for disassembling the villain Leet's technology. Already she had incorporated many of his own designs into her work. Hell, Leet was where she got the idea of containment foam from!

Dissecting Leet's work was always annoying as she had to analyse every weakness his power seemingly incorporated into his work. Dragon wondered how he had even survived this long with these many errors. But, she supposed, that was why he wasn't a terrible villain.

Dragon was pleasantly surprised when she got a call from Armsmaster. The fellow tinker always had many ideas to help her work and more than once had he offered an idea that would prove crucial down the line. Dragon turned on the face she used for speaking with other people and said "Collin, so glad to see you. How are you?"

Armsmaster curtly responded "Good. I need your help with something."

Dragon sighed when she heard this. Again and again she dropped hints but he never picked them up and only called on work-related issues. "What is it? If you couldn't solve it then I doubt that I could do much to help"

Armsmaster replied "Actually, I believe you're uniquely suited to solving this issue"

Dragon's processing froze as she ran through the possibilities that Collin had found out about her.. unique state. She immediately relaxed when she heard Collin say "There's a new hero I'm trying to recruit, and I need some help in convincing her. The cause of her Trigger event.. was a Ward and she's going to be punished. I need her to regain trust in the Protectorate and in herself."

Dragon made her projection nod and said "I could try and talk to her. In return I want you to call me every now and then and just tell me how you are, okay?

She could hear Armsmaster pause and take a deep breath. "Sure Dragon. Thank you."

He hung up, and Dragon let out a loud squeal of happiness..


	5. Chapter 5

Taylor fell to the floor as she tried to catch her breath. She heard a telltale whistle and urgently rolled out of the oncoming baton. She recovered and faced Aegis. The teen was barely sweating, _that bastard_, and simply raised his baton. Behind her she could hear notes being taken. _Training on Sunday morning? God damnit!_

It had been several days since Taylor had been inducted into the Wards, and no word came from the Chief Director regarding Shadow Stalker's punishment. In the meantime, she had been vigorously tested, both physically and her powers. The techies had tentatively rated her Shaker 7 Thinker 4 Brute 3 Blaster 5. The Blaster rating was originally 2 but was increased when Armsmaster commented she was the one that crippled Lung. When the testers found out she could sense and manipulate metal in about a block and a half's radius, they went silent and bumped her rating up by two.

Being a Ward was far harder than Taylor thought. There was an unholy amount of training, punctuated by long periods of boredom and inaction. Thankfully however the antics of Kid Win and Clockblocker, Chris and Dennis she learned, was more than enough to entertain her. Dennis had apologized for freezing her and accepted console duty without complaint. Well, too much complaint.

Combat training, however, was the hardest for her. She could handle the paperwork. She could even work with the boredom. But nothing really prepared her for Browbeat or Aegis bearing down on her with a baton. She could use her metal suit for a degree of protection, and they weakened their hits whenever it became clear she couldn't dodge, but Taylor could still feel several bruises where her armor was thinnest.

After the training Aegis tossed Taylor a water bottle and drunk his own. Taylor hastily gulped it down, before gasping "How'd I do?"

Aegis cracked his neck and said "You're doing fine. Kid Win was far worse when he first worked out. It's weird though. For a girl who took down Lung and Hookwolf, you aren't really experienced at fighting at close quarters."

Taylor shrugged and simply said "It's not like I went up and punched either of them. Hookwolf I just grabbed his blades and he was harmless, and I didn't really fight Lung. Just kind of shot at him at a distance."

Carlos took his mask off and looked towards the window. Armsmaster looked at him and nodded and said "You've improved quite a bit Steelback. Shame your meeting with Glenn didn't work out so well"

Taylor blushed and said nothing, thinking back to how her meeting with the head of Public Relations went. The man had suggested several alterations to her costume that.. had been particularly unwelcome. Needless to say, Dennis will never let her hear the end of it.

Taylor pulled together the metal on her body until it was shaped like a messenger's bag. This was her preferred method of carrying the metal around, and if needed she could conceal it in an actual bag. They both walked to the common room and walked around several sheets of paper Dennis had frozen. He had called it unofficial training, but everyone knew it was just him trying to trip people up. Dean was on console duty while Missy and Chris went on patrol. The other Wards were either at home or in their rooms. Carlos had already floated to the couch and Taylor could see he was fiddling with the TV remote. She sighed and moved to the kitchen. She was just getting out a carton of milk when her phone buzzed. Carlos also checked his as Taylor read the text. It wasn't good. She looked at Carlos and saw he had already left to suit up. She let her metal surround her. The Wards were being called.

* * *

Taylor, Browbeat and Aegis sat awkwardly at the back of a PRT personnel carrier. She listened attentively as a PRT agent told them the situation. The young man quickly listed out all they had on the villains in question. "The Undersiders. Teen villains, mostly smash and grab. Did however beat Browbeat a little before he joined. They have four members. Leader is Grue, smoke generator with a Shaker 5 rating. We know his clouds block vision and radio signals, but not much else. Tattletale is a combat Thinker with a rating of 3. Remember the protocols. Just don't let them talk. Next is Regent. Master 7. He can induce spasms in your body and make you drop stuff. Not sure why he's a 7 but he has priority here. Next is Hellhound. She prefers Bitch but that isn't PR friendly so don't call her that. Master 5. Empowers dogs to a massive size. Browbeat, notes?"

Browbeat looked surprised at being called out and looked away under the collective stares of Taylor and Aegis. He only said "Don't let them surround you"

The agent continued "You're up against a team two masters, a shaker, and a combat thinker. That's a dangerous combination. Remember, they've gotten away from heroes with far more experience than you before. Good luck out there"

Taylor felt out with her powers as Aegis looked over the bank's floorplan. Kid Win and Gallant were scouting out the nearby area while Vista hopped from rooftop to rooftop. Taylor snapped to attention when Aegis said "Steelback. You up for a little recon?"

Taylor gave him her full attention and said "Yea, what do you want me to do?"

Aegis pointed towards the bank and asked "Can you feel around inside? Need to see if there's any surprises."

Taylor focused and felt the building in front of her ripple as she focused hard on the bank. The foundations were extremely sturdy, and she could feel metal lining almost every wall. Inside she could mostly tell where people were by the position of phones and music players. They were all crouching down, and for some reason she could feel some sort of strange scepter being waved around while somebody with a gun worked the vault door. She turned to Aegis and reported as such.

Aegis called over the comms "Kid Win, Gallant, you're covering the back exit just in case okay? Vista, Clockblocker, Steelback, you're all with me while we prep near the entrance. "

Kid Win had just flown over the building and Gallant was moving when the bank doors opened. Slowly, a slow stream of people shuffled out. They held their hands on their head, and behind them a steady stream of darkness followed. Vista shrunk the space in front of the hostages so after a few steps they were almost in front of the entire PRT blockade. Taylor could feel the scepter walk out. She called out "Strange weapon moving out, assume it's one of the villains!"

Aegis, Browbeat, and Gallant rushed forward to meet the opposition, and Vista and Clockblocker bunched together. Taylor was a little confused where she should go but decided to stick with Aegis. A massive dog bounded out of the bank doors and Taylor immediately raised a glob of metal to shoot. She hesitated when she saw a girl riding on top of it, but realized it was most likely Hellhound. She looked at Aegis for guidance, and when he tilted his head towards the hellhound Taylor fired the blob at the giant dog's front paws. It wrapped around and bound the dog's paws, and Hellhound was nearly pitched off. When she saw what happened she let out a furious yell and Taylor was surprised when the mutant dog grew several inches in size. To her left Browbeat ran into the smoke and began to swing around, hoping to hit anything. Taylor winced as she felt the strange taser/scepter strike Browbeat. Aegis for his part was charging Hellhound and had flown over the dog's biting head to directly strike Hellhound. Gallant held the attention of several dogs by yelling and firing his blasts with no target in mind, simply buying time for Clockblocker and Vista to tag each dog one by one.

Taylor pulled metal from a streetlight and formed it into a blunted club. She fused it to her hand and moved to where she believed Browbeat was. She could still feel the scepter and it was moving away from her. She got closer to Browbeat and then was neatly punched in the head by a fist that came out of nowhere. She fell to her knees and let out a gasp. The hand disappeared and Taylor got her guard up. She reached around the area with feelers from her suit, and grinned when she bumped into him. She immediately wrapped a tendril around him and pulled him towards her. She swung out with her club and was rewarded by a meaty clunk.

A raspy, pained voice gasped out "Oh fuck, my ribs. Worse than when fucking Shadow Stalker shot me. Did you have to hit me that hard?"

Taylor pulled the villain closer to her and said "Er, sorry. Don't know my own strength. Anyways don't suppose you could make all this smoke disappear, Grue?"

Grue let out a ruthful laugh and gasped when it disturbed his ribs. They were at the very least cracked, if not outright broken. He gasped out "Sorry about this too"

Taylor was confused until she realized the scepter had snuck up behind her. She was too slow to react and was struck hard in the back of her head. She heard Grue let out a painful laugh and she too collapsed. She felt something push into her back and screamed when electricity coursed through her. She fell limp, and Grue slowly got up. "You could've done that sooner."

A playful voice quickly replied "Oh but then I wouldn't have been able to see you get beaten up by a newbie hero! Pure gold"

Grue hit someone in the smoke and said "Shut up and let's go. Tattletale should be almost done by now"

They both left Taylor on the ground, but before they left Taylor affixed a small metal triangle onto Grue's shoe that would allow her to track him into the bank. Taylor rolled onto her back and tried to call for help, only to find herself not in control of her tongue. Taylor fumbled and shook herself. She tried to get up but only succeeded in crawling a few centimeters. She could feel Grue move back into the bank and pulled her metal into a strange facsimile of a sleigh that she pushed forward.

Taylor exited the smoke and was surprised to see Hellhound was frozen and her dog subdued, and Gallant looking helplessly through the smoke for Browbeat. Aegis spotted her and immediately moved over. He picked her up and asked "Shit, are you hurt bad?"

Taylor managed to stutter out "Only g-got tasered. I think it was Regent?"

Aegis flew over to the PRT blockade and deposited her into the hands of a waiting paramedic. He ordered her to stay and then flew back to the bank entrance. Above, she saw Glory Girl smash through the roof into the bank. She leaned back and rested her head against the ambulance. The Wards could handle the rest.

* * *

Taylor looked away as Director Piggot gave them all a disapproving view. There was a heavy silence in the room and no Ward wanted to break it. Finally, Director Piggot addressed them all. "So. You're telling me you managed to take down one of their heaviest hitters, and most likely their method of escape, and still let them get away?"

There was a short silence afterward, but Aegis finally said "Director, after Glory Girl broke in the Undersiders panicked and pulled out. Tattletale had just managed to break open the safe and hadn't stolen a significant sum of money. Panacea was on the scene and was being held hostage."

Apparently that was the wrong thing to say as the Director's eyes flashed and she spat "So you're telling me that Panacea, a very famous healer nationwide, was being held hostage and you didn't begin any negotiation?"

Aegis sunk in on himself and muttered "We thought hostage negotiation was already attempted before we arrived. We didn't know that Panacea was inside until she texted Glory Girl for help."

Director Piggot's chair creaked as she rose. "And there's the kicker! Why was Glory Girl even at the bank? Do you think repairing the bank's roof was cheap? And fixing the vault door that Glory Girl broke? I read the after-action report, and nowhere does it say why or even when Glory Girl got trapped in the vault!"

Finally, Gallant spoke up. "Director, um... I was the one that called Glory Girl there. We knew that the Undersiders were experienced at escaping capture so I thought we could use the extra body. "

Director Piggot squared her shoulders and glared into Gallant's visor. "Well the extra body managed to cause more damage than all of you combined from last year! Gallant, reparations will be coming from _all _of your paychecks. Do you understand that?"

Gallant cringed away from the angry aura that suffused the room and immediately said "Yes ma'am."

Director Piggot visibly stopped herself from getting angrier, prying her hands from her desk and forcibly relaxing her shoulders. She looked around angrily for a moment before dismissing the Wards. "Dismissed. Kid Win could you please stay back? Let's talk a little about that weapon you used."

Taylor meekly filed out of the room with the other Wards, and soon after they separated. Aegis popped down so he could receive healing from Panacea while the other Wards, so Gallant gathered the other Wards so they could personally debrief.

Gallant started out by removing his helmet and saying "Alright, so let's say this," He drew a large rectangle, "is the bank. Here's me, Aegis, Browbeat, Clockblocker, Vista and Steelback." He drew 6 circles in different coloured markers mostly in theme with their costumes. He distinguished between Taylor and himself by filling in himself with blue. He then drew circles for the villains they had fought and began to draw out the events of the fight. "Okay so the hostages were let out, which meant that I couldn't fire my blasts safely and Steelback couldn't fire. Any thoughts?"

Vista pursed her lip before saying "It's weird that they knew how to neutralize your power so well, and that's not even talking about how they know that Steelback having a blaster power."

Taylor tilted her head and said "Well they could've seen me use my power before. Whether it was fighting Hookwolf or Lung"

Gallant shook his head and wrote to the side _'Info about Steelback's powers?'_ and then said "That's a lot of could haves, so let's focus on what we know. Aegis, Browbeat and Steelback ran forward, while me, Clock and Vista work to fight from a distance. Do we know where the villains are?"

Clockblocker leaned back and raised a hand to his head, in the classic thinker pose, before pointing and saying "There were dogs here and here, while Regent and Grue were somewhere in the smoke."

Gallant wrote _HH_ onto the dog and drew a fog which he wrote Regent and Grue in. "Browbeat runs in and is tazed by Regent, which means that they have some way to communicate in there. Steelback, Browbeat, can you tell us what it was like in there?"

Taylor thought back to her time in the cloud but couldn't accurately describe it to the Wards. Browbeat summed her up nicely by simply saying "It's like being caught in one of Vista's disruption fields except you can't see in them either. "Taylor had sparred with Vista on occasion, and she had a nasty trick of having it so minuscule movements will make it so it'll send you meters away in different directions leading to general confusion and an inability to move without nausea.

Gallant made notes next to the cloud, which read "Highly disorienting" and "Blinding" He drew an arrow from Browbeat into the cloud, then an arrow from Regent and a large X on the intersection. Browbeat shifted, a little embarrassed, but nodded. Gallant proceeded to make detailed notes on the fight overall and at the end Taylor looked confusedly at the whiteboard which was now decorated with an array of lines, circles, and x-marks. The Wards had all made various comments on the fight, and the fight map also held notes on potential counters. Taylor had mentioned she could sense where Regent's taser was while in Grue's smoke, so there was an important note saying that the smoke doesn't block powers. At the end of the debrief Gallant offered some congratulations for the capture of Hellhound, to Vista's delight, and apologised for costing them a considerable amount of money from their paycheques.

Browbeat laughed and joked "It's alright, Dean. Really. S'long you let us punch you once then we're okay"

The Wards laughed, but there was a hint of annoyance still lingering in some auras. Gallant made a mental note to hide from the other Wards for the next few days.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN:** Ohh fucking shit agh okie this chapter was just put off (hey I'm honest) but here is a new chapter of Valiance. My life is in your hands

Daniel Harper cracked his neck and shifted on his seat. The back of the PRT vans were never spacious, and was downright claustrophobic with all the PRT troops filed in. Normally there would be less, but because of the high-risk prisoners they were transporting the PRT was going full out. Hopefully they would be unneeded but living in Brockton Bay taught him a long time ago that if it's related to the gangs then they know. Inwardly he mused darkly whether or not he'll be able to watch his daughter graduate. His line of thought was quickly interrupted by the car screeching to a stop. Daniel swallowed as he filed out and when he got a clear look ahead Daniel nearly dropped his gun. The car ahead was nearly bisected vertically by a massive wall of blades, effectively halting the procession. He saw what was obviously Fenja and Menja growing on both sides, bearing down on the troops. Kaiser was slightly behind the duo and he could hear the Protectorate heroes filing out behind him. He clicked his safety off and mentally said his goodbyes.

He was taking aim at Menja when something flicked in the corner of his eye. Two bodies landed in their midst, and they were immediately surrounding in a dense fog. _Fog._ _God have mer-_he was interrupted by terrible ripping sounds all around him. From the low rhythmic thuds he could guess Fenja and Menja were moving to crush the van. He swallowed and swu-

* * *

Kaiser stared impassively at the slaughtered remains of the PRT soldiers. At the end of the convoy he could hear the rest of his Empire fighting the Protectorate heroes. More than enough time for him to finish his work. He whistled and beckoned Othala forward. He lifted a gauntlet and grinned, which went unnoticed by his troops. He felt her power surge through him and then strutted towards the first prisoner transport. He ripped it apart and was disappointed. Oni Lee. He scowled and motioned Fenja to kill him. He moved to the next transport and when he ripped it apart, he took one look inside and said "Rune, Hookwolf, pleasure to have you two return to us. Menja, if you will" The giant behind him nodded and reached in to pluck Hookwolf and Rune from the containment foam.

He slowly walked away, pleased at the turn out. Two of his soldiers rescued and a chink killed. He smiled darkly as sounds of the Protectorate losing reached his ears.

* * *

Taylor's day began with her father quietly knocking on her door, before shaking her awake. Taylor tried to push him away, mumbling about not having a patrol scheduled but she froze when he shoved her PRT issued phone in her face. She immediately threw off her covers and snatched it from her father, opening the message. _Mandatory Meeting-Wards HQ at 10:30_

She looked at the clock. It was already 10:23

Taylor was late to the meeting, but it was a pleasant surprise when she realized that she wasn't the only one late. She saw Aegis flying overhead and was treated to the sight of Clockblocker awkwardly trying to fit between 6 uniformed PRT officers on the elevator. When she reached the meeting room the presentation had already started, regardless of the members not present.

Miss Militia stood at the head of the table and grabbed the assorted Ward's attention by dropping a bomb. "Last night Rune and Hookwolf was freed by the other members of the Empire Eighty-Eight. Several Protectorate members were injured during this jailbreak, but thanks to New Wave the injuries were not fatal."

Several people in the room shifted, and Browbeat asked "If that was the only thing that happened then why are we here?"

Miss Militia shook her head and asked him "You didn't see the news this morning, did you? Well while the Empire was retreating the ABB showed up and it appears, they have a new tinker."

Taylor tilted her head and asked, "What makes the PRT think that?"

Miss Militia grimaced and clicked on the projector. The room went deathly silent. On the screen was a closeup of a ruined street and several frozen Empire 88 members. At the forefront was Stormtiger and Cricket, only recognizable due to their clothing. Their bodies appeared to have the same consistency and colour as the tarmac underneath them. Behind them was more remains of the Empire Eighty-Eight, with certain areas being strategically blurred out.

"Video evidence from Armsmaster's helmet camera show several objects being thrown at them and their effects is definitely tinkertech. We're cross-referencing any known tinkers on record that's capable of building these objects"

Kid Win asked "Wait so are we supposed to celebrate the Empire being cut down a few sizes or be worrying the new Tinker?"

Miss Militia gave him a deep stare and he finally said "Of course we're worrying about the new Tinker."

She looked around the room and said "We're reducing the number of patrols the Wards will be doing-and reducing the range covered. We're reducing every possible risk we can. "

The room erupted in protest, and Taylor found herself joining in. "What's the point of patrols if we're accomplishing nothing?"

Miss Militia let the noise die down, murmuring something under her breath. Taylor strained to hear it, but since her basic senses were as same as before her trigger she heard nothing. Finally, she said "Miss Militia, is that really what's going to happen? We have Lung in custody, and the Protectorate doesn't have to deal with most of the Empire now. The Wards are more needed than ever"

A cheery glint entered Miss Militia's eyes and Taylor immediately regretted speaking up. "Exactly! That's why, Steelback, the Director have authorized _all of you_" she heavily stressed, "To partake in a charity meet and greet! Something low-risk enough that it's almost already done planning. Hope you all have a great time!"

She escaped the room as the Wards all looked at each other. She let out a small chuckle when she heard a collective groan emanate from the door. Well, she had it worse in New York so these Wards would have to suck it up!

Taylor plastered on a fake smile and posed with the small girl. She had pulled back the metal where her mouth was and turned her suit into what Glenn Chambers had dubbed "Camera mode". Her suit was lustrous and smooth, unblemished except for a small badge on her breast which the Wards logo stood proudly. As the girl walked off with her mom Taylor spared a glance at her fellow Wards. Aegis was flying while holding a teen in his arms as his picture was taken, while adults preened over Vista in the corner. She had been cornered there early on and so far she hadn't been able to escape. Kid Win was somehow the most photogenic of the Wards, several LEDs in his suit adding a dramatic effect to his atmosphere. Gallant however was receiving lots of attention as he surreptitiously let off an aura of happiness and peace. Taylor froze as another child walked over and she immediately bent down to the small boy's level. She was about to smile again when she felt multiple familiar presences in her sense. _The head bombs. Nononono not again not again_. She felt guns holstered in their pants and them slinging duffle bags along filled with strange spheres that she couldn't make sense of. She put on the fakest smile she could, and then immediately moved over to where her team leader was. Aegis was momentarily alone and Taylor capitalized.

"Aegis-Aegis look at me. I-I think there's a bunch of ABB coming towards us." Aegis momentarily froze yet immediately resumed a team leader's role. He brought his hand up to his ear and said "Aegis to Overwatch, any gang members on the lines? Specifically ABB, Steelback said she sensed something."

Taylor fidgeted anxiously as they waited on an answer and stiffened when the comms buzzed "Aegis, nothing to report. Is your teammate feeling alright? It's a hot day out."

Aegis gave her a quick shrug before posing with yet another teen. He made quick shooing motions and whispered "Go check it out, we'll cover"

Taylor nodded and rushed away. Her mouthplate reformed and she pulled extra metal from the bag she brought along. She formed extra arms and swung upward onto the roofs as she moved towards where she felt the ABB thugs. She had swung over the rooftops when she felt something... strange yet again. An oddly shaped weapon shaped like a massive tube was mingling with the combined ABB presence and Taylor couldn't make heads or tails of it. Chances were it was dangerous, however, so she disabled several internal components. She peaked over the roof and confirmed her senses. Several thugs wearing questionable outfits were gathering at the mouth of the alley, one that directly led to where the Wards were doing the meet and greet. In the middle a relatively tall woman donning a gasmask gesticulated at the bombs, yelling hoarse at her goons in a language that Taylor couldn't understand.

She turned and looked at some of the more scared gang members and threatened "You fuckers do you not understand me? I told you to grab the goddamned bombs and get ready!" The young members quickly acquiesced and frantically moved to follow her orders. Unfortunately, it appeared she was unsatisfied with one member's performance, so she pointed directly at him and suddenly he disintegrated in front of every other member. Taylor felt the dread in her stomach grow heavier. If the villain could kill people as easily as that then she was very outmatched. She moved closer to the centre of the roof and radioed for backup. "Steelback to Console, Steelback to Console, I've got the ABB bombmaker right here and it looks like they're about to crash the Wards Meet and Greet. Is there any backup nearby?"

A rusty voice answered, and Taylor noted with surprise that it was a PRT officer that answered. At the very least Browbeat would be on, but she supposed he had left for home already. "Console here, looking at the map and the closest would be Velocity but he's still about four minutes out. Can you wait for ten for Dauntless and Miss Militia to show up?"

Taylor peaked over and cursed internally when she saw the thugs finishing unpacking the contents of their duffle bags. "Console it appears the thugs are almost finished preparations. Could you please inform Assault of the situation?"

Console's reply was cut short when one of the ABB thugs looked up and noticed her standing on the ledge. She immediately swung back and prayed he didn't recognize her. She peaked over again and saw the tall lady pointing her grunts to where the Wards were congregated. "Console! The ABB are moving towards the Wards and I can't just let them go! Where's backup?"

Slowly, the voice said "Steelback, I am informing the Wards of the situation and am relaying evacuation orders currently. Velocity is wrapping up and will get there in two minutes while Dauntless is flying over. Permission to engage have been authorized, but please refrain from lethal measures."

Taylor cracked her neck and pulled metal from her surroundings and formed it into thick wires she could control on a whim. She swung over the roof and slammed into the midst of the gang members. Several closest to her were knocked off balance, and some even dropped their guns.

Their shock did not last forever, and Taylor clucked and formed a shield on her left arm to block a spray of bullets. She extended it into a cocoon that sealed her against a dumpster and smiled when she realized that she could absorb the bullets to strengthen her shield. She pulled the dumpster open behind her and scrunched her nose at the smell. She shuddered as she remembered another time like this but shook it off and moved into where she thought their leader was. Off in the distance she could feel her teammates evacuating civilians and moving to assist her, but they wouldn't be there just yet. She could hear the ringleader yelling at the gang members to keep going, and Taylor felt several bombs start leaving the area. Hopefully her other Wards could contain them.

Taylor jumped through the dumpster wall, straight into the leading woman's side. She yelped and Taylor immediately used surplus metal to try and bind her hands. The woman swung the strange launcher towards her and pulled the trigger, but Taylor felt the broken mechanisms inside click without action. The woman looked murderously at her launcher but simply swore and pulled a sphere from her belt.

Taylor immediately backed away, well aware of what exactly her bombs could do. She ripped apart the internal components of the bomb and grinned when the gang leader yelled in anger. Smug, Taylor called out "Oh I'm sorry are these toys yours? Shame they're already broken!"

A heavy crunch landed behind her, and Taylor turned to see Gallant and Aegis standing at the ready. Unfortunately, the bombmaker used her distraction to pull out another bomb and threw it at her own feet. There was a popping sound, and Taylor looked to see that the majority of the alley was now gone; save for various gang members strewn about groaning on the ground. She turned to look at Aegis, who in the meantime had picked up one of the bombs and looked at it curiously. "The other gang members?"

Aegis startled and fumbled with the bomb, before regaining his senses and said "Oh yea, Assault and Clockblocker had it handled. Evac's already almost done; Vista's just dealing with the stragglers."

Taylor floated over one of the discarded bombs and looked at it curiously, motioning Aegis over. She pulled apart the casing and looked into it's innards. Taylor hadn't really thought hard about dealing with the bombs so it was mostly warped and inoperable, but she could tell that if she reverted what she did the device still wouldn't function. She crushed it, and turned away.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN:** Alright Nadir C2 got me all fired up for writing. Ok that was a lie I have so much studying to do I hate finals save me What the fuuuu it's been months and I can't even explain what Summer just blew by. Fuck.

Inwardly, Taylor mused that since her power allowed her to control any metal in several block's radius, she was a tinker's worst nightmare.

She reported she sensed the guns the gang members had brought but tacked on an addendum that she felt something strange in all their heads. Hopefully this would call for MRIs on the captured gang members which would quickly reveal whatever the bombmaker had done to them.

Taylor twirled a metal rose in her hand, but then quickly absorbed it into her armor when Carlos walked into the Wards common room. He quirked an eyebrow at her being in costume, and Taylor sheepishly pulled it back into her dull grey backpack; an accessory she kept almost constantly now. Rather than ask her what she was doing, Carlos filled her in on what had transpired. "Evacuation went pretty quickly, aside for stragglers who either refused or believed it was some sort of scheme to trick them. Eventually we got them to leave, but I'm not too sure if they would've been safe if Bakuda had reached the square. Can you tell me any more about Bakuda? Just your general thoughts. "

Taylor tilted her head, and after carefully reconsidering how the fight went, she said "She's… confident. Well, that's the closest word I can think of. She believes that her bombs will never fail her, and anything short of that is impossible. "

Carlos quickly said "Which you proved her wrong. The end your report said that she teleported herself and whatever gang members nearby with another kind of bomb?"

Taylor tilted her head back, and said "You know, I've been thinking about that for a while now. I mean, what kind of bomb can teleport people? They've done tinker analysis of where she was, right? There's really no explanation, unless you expand the definition of bomb, and you raise the possibility that her bombs' effects aren't like a typical bomb."

Carlos considered what she said, before typing something into his phone. Looking up, he said "Tinkertech. Always glad to talk to you Taylor. See you later" and then walked out.

* * *

The next few weeks passed with little note. Aside for increased gang presence at school, which was already overt thus not changing much, Taylor could say that she could look forward to most of her day. Emma had become a fallen star, culminating in an ill-fated screaming match in the cafeteria with several other students, whereas Sophia simply disappeared, and Madison backed off. Many Asian students had dropped out of school, prompting flurried rumours of a new Asian gang lord replacing Lung. How little they knew. How much they knew.

Wards work was similarly quiet. It was if every gang was preparing for a coming storm. The Merchants, showing a lick of sense for once, had pulled back from some of the most contentious areas, choosing to preserve what little strength they had. Skidmark could prove to be a capable leader it seemed, but only when he wasn't high.

Despite losing the majority of its capes, the Empire Eighty-Eight had not completely collapsed. Strained, of course, but their overseas connections held them tight. Already there were reports of new Empire members reaching the Protectorate.

The ABB, on the other hand, had retreated. Only holding the very inner sections of the Docks, it seemed that whatever leadership was left had decided to cut their losses and fortify whatever space they had left.

For Taylor, the changing times were welcome. Of course, it could mean that a new parahuman could spring up and destroy half of Brockton Bay, but it could also mean that slowly order could be restored. At this point, the city could only go up. Which brought her to today. Daylight patrols were always boring, but apparently cultivated an image for the Protectorate. What that image exactly was, she didn't know. But she patrolled anyways.

Taylor lifted herself up onto the ledge, metal limbs extending from her torso to offer additional stability. She shot Kid Win a look of annoyance when he flew above her and laughed. It was rare to come across any powered villains while on daylight patrol, but it was still basic procedure to maintain some faint veneer of stealth.

Kid Win spun on his hoverboard and twirled his pistol, trying to channel a desperado. To Taylor however he looked like an utter tool. "So, Steelback, I heard when you caught Grue you gave him a little love tap? But I also heard that his teammate was getting jealous of all the attention Grue was getting so he tasered you! How scandalous, making two boys fight amongst each other"

Taylor sighed and gave him a withering glare. Him and Dennis had refused to let go of the bank incident, despite it happening almost a month ago. No how many times she reiterated and even demonstrated her strike, they still called it a love tap. She shook her head and focused on scaling the rooftops. She would have to wait for something new to come up so she could tease them back. She was about to leap from the top of another building when she heard the sirens.

* * *

The Protectorate base was a frenzy of activity. Taylor couldn't track a single person in the crowd as she and Kid Win tried to make it to the Wards room. Then, to the side, she heard Battery bellow "Wards to Conference Room Four! Wards to Conference Room Four!"

She and Kid Win quickly moved to there and was greeted by almost all of the Brockton Bay Wards looking sombre. Taylor removed her helmet and sat down, twirling a metal ball between her knuckles as she waited for whatever meeting to begin.

Finally, Assault walked in. The man was unusually silent, and his jaw was clenched tight. He looked around the room and said "Anybody who doesn't want to fight against Leviathan can leave now. For those who do, we need to contact your parents. I don't want to send kids against an Endbringer. But we need every power we got."

With that, he left. The Wards sat frozen, unsure of what to do. Every instinct screamed at them to run, but they didn't want to be the first to leave. Above all, their city was at danger and Taylor doubted that any of them could forgive themselves if they left. Finally, one last look was given. Then they left to make their individual phone calls.

* * *

Taylor stood alone in her room, staring at her phone. She didn't know how to ask this of her dad. But she also didn't know how to leave. Finally, she hit dial and raised it to her ear. After some ringing, her father's familiar breath filled her ear. "Hey Taylor. It's a real panic out here. When are you getting back?"

Taylor froze, and didn't know how to answer. She swallowed, but Danny continued. "I've got the car ready and I'm pretty sure that the bridge doesn't have too much traffic. We can probably make it out before Leviathan hits. When are you coming?"

Finally, Taylor choked out "Dad… I can't"

There was a pause. "What do you mean you can't? Taylor, you can't fight an Endbringer."

The phone felt unbearably heavy, but Taylor couldn't put it down. She began to sob but tried to keep her voice clear. "Dad… I'm sorry. I need to fight."

Danny's voice grew frantic. "Taylor. Taylor! No-you can't! I-I know what Leviathan does! I've seen pictures of every fight please Taylor you cannot do this I didn't let you join the Wards for this!"

Taylor's hand began to shake as she said "D-dad. This is my home. I can't leave it. I'm sorry. I need to stay. "

Danny's voice also began to choke. "Taylor please. I can't lose you. You can't leave me."

"Dad. I'm sorry. Please tell the PRT yes."

She left the room several minutes later, her face composed.

She stopped a PRT officer. "I need a lift to the Ship graveyard please."

* * *

It was strangely sunny. One would think that there would be storm clouds or rain. But no, not a hint of clouds in the sky. Armbands created by Dragon had already been passed out at this point, and the silence was unbroken aside from the occasional static from the bands. There were several fliers up in the air, all carefully watching the coast for movement. In the middle of the group, Legend glowed.

All eyes were on him, his presence only dwarfed by that of Alexandria who stood behind him. Slowly, he turned his gaze across the group. "Everyone. Thank you for coming to this fight. It's because of the early alert from Dragon and Armsmaster that we were able to gather this early. We weren't so lucky other times. I'm not going to pretend Leviathan is something we can hope to defeat. Every time he had surfaced, we fought him until he sustained enough damage and was forced to retreat, or Scion arrived. It looks like we won't have the latter option today. Scion is somewhere in Japan right now, deal with the aftermath of an earthquake."

He gestured towards the side, as if Scion were just a little away in that direction. "On a good day, about one in four of us in this room will die. Not quite as bad as a fight with Behemoth, but not quite good either. "

He formed a fist and brought it down. "We designate places he," it wasn't said, but everyone know he was referring to Leviathan, "surfaces, and after analysis we formulated two designations. Hard and soft. In hard targets, we keep him in. We make him work for every inch he gets and try our best to draw out time for Scion for alive. Brockton Bay is a soft target. Underneath the city is a water aquifer which can be used to possibly collapse the city. Here, all we can do is fight him off the quickest we can before he brings the city down."

The group grew more silent than it had been before, and small glances were exchanged. Slowly, understanding settled on the group. With a nod, Legend said "If we're lucky, then today become the day Leviathan was sent running from Brockton Bay with its tail between its legs. Best of luck, everyone."

He shifted into his breaker state and flew up. People in the group began to spread out. Shakers quickly identified their powers' effects and coordinated, while blasters grouped to focus their power. Taylor wasn't sure which group she should go to, but Triumph gently grabbed her arm. "You may be a very powerful shaker, but it won't be helpful here. We need you to fire as hard as you can."

Taylor gulped at those words, thinking about her short journey a few minutes before. She had gone to the ship graveyard and pulled all the metal she could feel from there. She had never controlled so much before, and already she doubted she could compress it into her armor for long. She nodded and walked over to the group of blasters. The only familiar members of the group were some of New Wave, the rest having joined the shielders. Taylor felt at odds in the group, her own blaster power really only an extension of her shaker power.

Finally, there were calls of alarm from the fliers. In the distance, there was a lone figure. Even at a distance, its unnatural shape was obvious.

Every group was tense, and visible powers flickered into existence. Lightning fast, Leviathan raised its arms. A shadow fell onto the earth.

Later footage would reveal that Leviathan had been building the wave for miles and had kept it invisible by scattering its molecules but keeping the kinetic energy. This was the first time it had ever employed this strategy. Nobody was prepared.

Taylor vision returned while she was knee-deep in water. She whipped her head around and tried to regain her bearings, and saw Leviathan ripping apart the front line. Already her armband was barking out causalities and injured. She watched as Leviathan casually walked through the defenders, every step resulting in a parahuman either being injured or dying.

The rest of the blasters had remained in more or less the same position. Most were still recovering, but Taylor could see that several were already on their feet. Taylor steadied her aim on Leviathan and raised her hand and fired. There was a short burst, and Leviathan raised its arm to block the projectile. Other blasters had begun to join in with their own multicoloured attacks.

Taylor could see Brutes run towards Leviathan to try and stall his movements, and her heart stilled every time she saw one get ripped apart or in one particularly gruesome case get kicked in half. The Triumvirate had already intervened multiple times, saving several lives in the process. Taylor shaped more metal and launched a particularly vicious strike at Leviathan. Unfortunately, it's dodge was just as fast, and Taylor saw the bullet splash into the ocean. She raised her hands to fire more but blinked as she saw Eidolon fly ahead. His hands were covered in a strange mass, and Taylor could only watch as he struck Leviathan with far more force than should be possible. Alexandria joined in and carefully they had locked Leviathan down. Immediately, shaker effects focused on the area. Many strange interactions occurred, from what seemed like the ground turning inside out to the area simultaneously becoming unbearably bright and incredibly murky. In all honestly Taylor couldn't describe it and decided to leave it for post-analysis.

Leviathan apparently had enough of this game, and bodily ripped itself out of the zone. It sped towards the shakers, and its water echo ripped havoc in its wake. Numerous brutes died trying to stop it, and Taylor almost stopped firing when she heard Aegis called over the band. She looked around to ask, and one of the blasters slowly said "She said incapacitated. He'll be fine."

Taylor sighed relief and refocused on making Leviathan regret coming to land. She continued firing and winced as she saw Leviathan begin to tear through the shakers. More names were broadcast over the armbands, but Taylor tuned it out as she focused on one of the few injuries Leviathan had sustained. Its body was mostly untouched, aside for a few scorch marks and several gashes across its front and arms. Suddenly, Leviathan stopped moving. It turned its head towards the blasters, and Taylor felt her blood chill. And in a blink of an eye, it was dashing towards them.

Mover support as called. They couldn't lose the blasters so early into the fight, and Taylor blinked as she felt arms grab onto her back and pull her up. She formed handles for her unnamed flier to grab onto, and she heard a short grumble of thanks. She continued firing but looked away when she saw Leviathan begin to tear into what blasters hadn't been saved in time.

Taylor's own flier eventually put her down a safe distance away from Leviathan. She could see several brutes, most notably Alexandria, trying to grapple Leviathan down for Eidolon and Legend to blast it. Taylor's arms itched as she considered pulling more metal and try to assist, but she knew it was suicide. Leviathan could shear through steel with more ease than she could with paper. She'd die in an instant. Taylor could only continue firing and mourn whenever she saw a brute get stomped or thrown off.

Her shots were barely attracting its attention, asides from the occasional dodge and redirection. Other blasters were similarly having no effect, and there was a call to stop over the armband. An unknown voice called "Everyone on it! Three! Two! One! Fire!"

Taylor obeyed the voice and fired on command. Leviathan raised an arm, and then a chunk was taken out of it. There were cheers, but then the Endbringer disappeared. The armband began to call out more names. Taylor tried to listen along but felt a sob rise when she heard some names she never wanted to hear. "Gallant deceased, GH-7. Kid Win deceased GH-7"

_Dean, Chris, I'm sorry._

* * *

This wasn't working. Even Taylor could tell that. By now Alexandria's and the few remaining brute's attempts to stop it were few and far in between. Armsmaster had pulled out something halfway through the fight that looked like it would stop Leviathan, but it just batted the halberd out of the way before kicking Armsmaster away like a child's toy. Taylor realised then that the remaining parahumans had lost hope. Today would go down as one of the bad days. She herself had nearly been clipped by Leviathan's water echo several times, but either pulled herself away in time or did her best to redirect most of the kinetic energy. It didn't help the pain emanating from her chest, but Taylor supposed it was better than dying. Too many of her friends had died or been injured. Browbeat, Vista, Clockblocker, and Aegis. She was the last Brockton Bay Ward still fighting. And she had run out of options.

She pulled as hard as she could. Every scrap of metal within several miles' radius. Buildings were stripped and foundations were torn from their roots. Already she could hear buildings beginning to collapse in the distance. But none of it would matter if Leviathan sunk the city. She coalesced all the metal she had gathered. Just enough to double her suit's density and fashion a pair of extra limbs. Blasting Leviathan hadn't worked. But she was going to _cut_ him. What had been suicide what felt like hours before had become necessity. Taylor hoped it would work.

* * *

It was the story which legends would grow out of. A single Ward, standing up to Leviathan. Perhaps in some she would overcome and singlehandedly stop the Endbringer. This isn't one of those.

She fought hard. But in the end, she became another name.

But every ending is another story's beginning.

Taylor Hebert, Valiant until the End.

**Ending Note:  
**Ok ok I know what you're thinking "this fucker cannot come back half a year later and just kill off the main character!"

Well, it turns out this fucker can and just did.

But I'm sorry really sorry, this was planned out waaay in advance.

But my last message to you all is this:

This story was never truly about Taylor Hebert.


End file.
